Dim
Sum

Dim sum refers to a style of Chinese
food prepared as small bite-sized or individual
portions of food traditionally served in small steamer
baskets or on small plates. Dim sum is also well
known for the unique way it is served in some restaurants,
wherein fully cooked and ready-to-serve dim sum
dishes are carted around the restaurant for customers
to choose their orders while seated at their tables.

Eating dim sum at a restaurant is usually known
in Cantonese as going to "drink tea" (yum
cha), as tea is typically served with dim sum.

Dim sum is usually linked with the older tradition
from yum cha (tea tasting), which has its roots
in travelers on the ancient Silk Road needing a
place to rest. Thus teahouses were established along
the roadside. Rural farmers, exhausted after working
hard in the fields, would go to teahouses for a
relaxing afternoon of tea. At first, it was considered
inappropriate to combine tea with food, because
people believed it would lead to excessive weight
gain. People later discovered that tea can aid in
digestion, so teahouse owners began adding various
snacks.

The unique culinary art of dim sum originated with
the Cantonese in southern China, who over the centuries
transformed yum cha from a relaxing respite to a
loud and happy dining experience. In Hong Kong,
and in most cities and towns in Guangdong province,
many restaurants start serving dim sum as early
as five in the morning. It is a tradition for the
elderly to gather to eat dim sum after morning exercises.
For many in southern China, yum cha is treated as
a weekend family day. More traditional dim sum restaurants
typically serve dim sum until mid-afternoon (around
the time of a traditional Western 3:00 coffee break).
However, in modern society it has become common
place for restaurants to serve dim sum at dinner
time, various dim sum items are even sold as take-out
for students and office workers on the go.

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